Direct Access Barrister Fees

Agreeing fees with your barrister

Barristers are experts in the law. Barristers can advise, draft documents and represent you in court, tribunals or mediations. Barristers can negotiate and attend meetings on your behalf. Your barrister will help you resolve your legal issue more quickly, more efficiently and often at a lower cost than a solicitor. Be aware, however, there are some cases and situations in which you will still need to instruct a solicitor as well as a barrister.

If you wish to instruct a barrister to advise you, represent you or otherwise act on your behalf, you will need to agree their fee in advance of their taking on the work. Barristers’ charges vary. How much you pay will depend on the seniority of the barrister, the complexity of your case and your barrister’s assessment of how much work is involved. Your barrister will either propose a fixed fee for specific work or a flexible fee based on his or her hourly rate, which means that the total cost will depend on how many hours he or she works on your behalf.

You can agree the fee either directly with your barrister or with the clerk in the barrister’s chambers. The clerk is someone who handles barristers’ administration matters and who is able to deal with direct access fee enquiries.